For the last decade West Plains Bistro, a higher-end restaurant situated in Aldershot, has been a quiet mainstay in the Region’s two most important food events, winning some top honours along the way.
Irene Burns is proud the bistro she opened in 2005 is part of the 10th-anniversary edition of Taste of Burlington running from February 19th – March 11th. She’s also thrilled her chef, Brandon Ashby, is defending his 2017 “Best, and Most Creative Soups” and “Foodies Choice First Runner-Up” Titles at the Living Rock’s Soupfest 2018 on Weds, February 21st. (West Plains is the only restaurant that is participating in both events this year and has done so consistently for years.)
The nuts and bolts of reservations/tickets etc. can be found at each website, but in essence both provide an opportunity to experience a range of offerings from a plethora of restaurants in Burlington and Hamilton. There are plenty of newcomers at both events, and many are featuring an eat-local component on their plates.
“Taste of Burlington 2018” is a prix-fixe dining program with 3-course lunch and dinner menus ranging from $15 to $40. It has grown from, shall we say, an intimate launch event in the Tourism Burlington office with a dozen restaurants showcasing a few apps, to a full-fledged sold-out launch party for 350 guests (and a waiting list of eighty more), and no fewer than 36 participating restaurants involved in the ongoing promotion. West Plains won the top prize at the 2014 launch event for a wonderful Cauliflower soup incidentally.
Soupfest now draws around 5000 guests, sampling soups from 27 restaurants, up significantly from its first go around in 2003. A major fundraiser in support of youth-at-risk, there’s some great music, and local celebrities and politicians can be found serving soup during the course of the event which runs from 11:30 am to 9 pm.
Restaurants compete in various categories: Julie Conway, the indefatigable senior Living Rock staffer overseeing the event, advises that in 2018 they’ll include “Best Soup, Most Creative Soup, Best Display, Tastiest Heart Smart (all as voted by the public), and then the Foodie Awards for best soup as well as 1st and 2nd runner-up, as well as Foodies Choice for Most Creative and Must Try soups.” She also notes that the judges will be virtually incommunicado as the Chefs take their verdicts “very, very seriously” and need to know judges are not receiving “secret” details before rendering a decision.
Irene Burns calls Taste of Burlington a “win-win.” She was in from Day 1, both to be part of the community and to help raise the profile of the Bistro, getting new customers through the door that might not have come otherwise. She says the growth of the event since it began has been amazing. “We’d bring a tray with two dozen of one item for the launch party, whereas now we are preparing 3-400 portions!”
The same is true for Soupfest where one of her staff now spends two days making 200 litres of soup. She says she doesn’t begrudge the cost – last year’s winning soup was a clever meld of zucchini, bacon and Stilton - as it is for a good cause, one she is passionate about.
West Plains Bistro’s peers, Downtown Bistro, Paradiso, Pepperwood, and The Water Street Cooker were also part of the very first Taste of Burlington event ten years ago. I dare say the motivations of many of the restaurants participating in these events – whether for the first, or tenth time are similar. And the lucky residents of Hamilton and Burlington are definitely winners too: because what’s not to love? Good food, the potential to experience something new, and to support a worthy cause.
Bon Appétit!
Full disclosure: I have been invited to cover Taste of Burlington for a number of years by the organizers, and was one of the judges at the launch event last month. Similarly, I have helped adjudicate Soupfest for the past few years and have been designated lead judge this year. Offerings at the latter event are judged blind, and – as with other participating restaurants - I have no idea what West Plains Bistro will be serving this year.
Alex (Alex can be reached on twitter @AlexBielak)
